Babes In The Woods
Written by Trevor Nicol
Written by Trevor Nicol
A message from our panto writer, Trevor Nicol:
‘Babes in the Wood’ was originally written for the Florians in 1993 and of all the pantos I’ve written is probably my favourite. It’s been done twice more since then in 2004 and 2015. It features one of the nastiest villains in Pantoland, namely the Sheriff of Nottingham: Baron Squeezum Dry. The plot is particularly dark in that it involves the Sheriff ordering the deaths of his nephew and niece in order to claim their inheritance. This provides an opportunity for some equally dark humour, which appealed to me when I was writing it. The other villain is the wicked witch Catafalque, whose favourite food is “bratatouille” – the main ingredient of which is children! For the uninitiated a catafalque is a platform that a coffin rests on, and the word just sprang into my head when thinking of a suitable name for the wicked witch. There is no real recognised standard plot for ‘Babes in the Wood’, so apart from the basic facts involving the children being abandoned in the forest you can really let your imagination take flight. In the panto tradition ‘Babes’ often features the character of Robin Hood, so I was happy to include him as the principal boy figure. |
With Robin, you get the added bonus of his Merrie Men such as Friar Tuck and Little John. You also get a principal girl with the feisty character of Maid Marian. The presence of two orphan babes means of course that you have to have someone to look after them, and that’s where the dame, Nurse Nellie Nukey comes in. It also gives you the opportunity of having a funny schoolroom scene where you can involve more kids in the show. This panto was also performed by the Dingwall Players, so it has had a busy life since I wrote it all those years ago. It’s always good to include topical references in a panto script, for example currently there would need to be a reference to Brexit. However, topical references usually have to be amended when a panto is revived, such as the names of the two daft characters in ‘Babes’ which originally were Boris and Gorby, but in more recent versions their names have been changed to Bill and Ben.
Production Staff
Director: Fiona McDonald Musical Director: Anna Merrouni Choreographer: Fiona McDonald Fight Arranger: Ken Bamborough Wardrobe: Fiona Grant, Agnes Sangster, Maralyn Allen, Cynthia Nicol and Catherine McDonald Stage Manager: Allen Perrin Stage Crew: Sam Jackson. Fiona Grant, Shannon White and Fiona McDonald Sound: Philip Nicol Lighting: David Russell Props: Steve Kelly and Carla Kelly Set Construction: Allen Perrin, Trevor Nicol, Shannon White and Fiona McDonald Set Design: Ian Thomson Poster & Programme: Graham Eden Front of House: Maureen Pringle Written: Trevor Nicol Lyrics: Caroline Nicol Additional Lyrics: Alyn Ross |
Cast
Alan-a-Dale: Brian Howlett Sheriff of Nottingham: Trevor Nicol Bill: Nicola Gray Ben: Morag Barron Maid Marion: Morag Russell Rose: Caroline Nicol Nurse Nellie: Nicholas Nicol Jack: Ben Hasson Jill: Alexandra Brown Robin Hood: Katie Watson Will Scarlet: Alan Hasson Little John: Andrew Gull Friar Tuck: Carla Kelly Catafalque: Aileen Hendry Herne the Hunter/Richard 1: Alan Holling Guards: Anne Bamborough, Sofie MacLeod, Katie McGill and Jaden MacDonald Forest Animals: Liam Hasson, Clara Yates, Julia Yates, Elissa Hunter-Dorans Ensemble: Anne Bamborough, Sofie MacLeod, Katie McGill, Chantelle Allan, Robyn Green, Jaden MacDonald, Kara MacKenzie, Ella Mitchell, Emma MacRae, Nina Thomson, Caitlin Thomson, Liam Hasson, Brook MacKenzie, Natasha Sutton, Julia Yates, Clara Yates, Elissa Hunter-Dorans |
Acknowledgements
Inverness Area Gang Show; 2nd Inverness (Kingsmills) Scout Group; Eden Court Creative; printmeit.com
Inverness Area Gang Show; 2nd Inverness (Kingsmills) Scout Group; Eden Court Creative; printmeit.com
Babes in the Woods in the News
Babes in the Woods Audience Feedback
"Congratulations everyone. LOVED the dress rehearsal tonight, so much fun. Have a fabulous run & see you all next week."
"BIG CONGRATULATIONS to all involved in Babe's in the Wood. Great show very funny 😂😁😃Well done"
"Mahoosive well done to ALL Florians on yer opening night of Panto! Great entertainment, great dame, evil baddy and very very funny pair of dafties! What more could ya ask for! 👏👏👏"
"Thank you for the brilliant show last night! The family Christmas can now commence!"
"The Hilton Rainbows Brownies Guides and Leaders had a great time at panto last night. Recommend it to everyone!"
"Fantastic show tonight!! Haven't laughed so much in ages!😃😂 well done to all the cast and crew involved! 🎉😊"
"All the best to you all for your final trip into Woods, you have all done brilliantly well done 😊"
"BIG CONGRATULATIONS to all involved in Babe's in the Wood. Great show very funny 😂😁😃Well done"
"Mahoosive well done to ALL Florians on yer opening night of Panto! Great entertainment, great dame, evil baddy and very very funny pair of dafties! What more could ya ask for! 👏👏👏"
"Thank you for the brilliant show last night! The family Christmas can now commence!"
"The Hilton Rainbows Brownies Guides and Leaders had a great time at panto last night. Recommend it to everyone!"
"Fantastic show tonight!! Haven't laughed so much in ages!😃😂 well done to all the cast and crew involved! 🎉😊"
"All the best to you all for your final trip into Woods, you have all done brilliantly well done 😊"
Babes in the Woods Gallery